If you’re wondering how your local dealer assesses value on the vehicles you see presented on the lot, take a look at what the Kelley Blue Book company is offering to auto industry businesses. In a recent announcement, KBB unveiled its new “Quick Values” auto price tool that will be available for dealers, insurance offices and other business clients to try free for 30 days.
For a long time, everyone from the dealership top brass to the man on the street has known that the Kelley Blue Book company has been a front-runner in developing price guides for use in new or used car sales or car financing agreements. KBB values are useful in all of the many private car sales you see on Craigslist. Buyers often look up these auto values before looking for a new or used car on a dealer lot, just to make sure they aren’t getting upsold. But not everyone knows just how much dealers and other businesses also rely on KBB values to control their own costs.
If you’re wondering how knowing more about Kelley Blue Book values can help you on the lot when you’re buying or financing a new or used car, think about how important it is pinpoint an agreed price before a sale or financing deal. Getting buyers and sellers to “meet on price” is something that Kelley is known for.
What the recent “Quick Deals” offer adds to the mix is also important to know about if you are trying to optimize your 2011 car financing agreement through talking about price. First, dealers who sign up for this service will have more constantly updated information on the general market price of your vehicle. This includes items like “wholesale value” and “auction value” that may or may not apply to your particular car financing deal, but can also help dial in price.
It might benefit the dealer to have more up to date information about vehicles that are for sale, but for new and used car buyers, specialized business products have the capacity to hurt a deal if, for example, a dealer tries to imply that the “public pricing” doesn’t match their inside data. To help with this kind of situation, read up on your vehicle thoroughly, using the most current public Kelley Blue Book price, and be able to talk intelligently about how your desired ride stacks up to others for sale elsewhere. In a car financing deal, look around for the lowest interest rates from third party lenders, and don’t be cowed into taking a deal that sounds high. Prudence and patience can help you level the playing field and take advantage of dealer pricing driven by complex and competitive new tools and data mining processes.